1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for dewatering a fibrous web, and, more particularly, to a suction equipped press for removing water from a fibrous web.
2. Description of the Related Art
Presses for removing water from a fibrous web are known in the art. Documents EP 1709239 A2 and EP 1518960 A1 disclose machines for the production of fibrous webs with devices for mechanical dewatering of fibrous webs. The fibrous web is guided between an outside and an inside dewatering belt, and over a suction roll through the press zone. To apply the pressing pressure, an additional belt is provided with high tensile stress inside the loop of the outside dewatering belt. These devices are very complex and expensive. Each of these belts is guided over a plurality of guide rolls. In addition, tension controls, control systems to control the belt travel and conditioning devices are necessary. These belts are also subject to wear and tear, so they need to be replaced from time to time. Each replacement necessarily requires a shutdown of the paper machine. This results in production losses which are reflected in high operating costs. An additional disadvantage of the known devices manifests in the production of tissue webs when a plurality of different paper types are produced on a paper machine. In order to satisfy the different quality requirements of the paper types, at least part of the belts which are in contact with the fibrous web must be adapted to the specific paper, meaning they must be exchanged. The expenditure for this on the known machines is great.
What is needed in the art is a device that can lower operating and investment costs as well as increase the flexibility in the production of different paper types.